9.3 CRM, Visual Observers & SOPs

9.3 CRM, Visual Observers & SOPs

Quick Answer: CRM makes the whole crew and its tools work as a safety system. Know CAR 901.20 (visual observers), 901.75 (VO in EVLOS), 901.21 (comply with instructions), 901.23 (procedures/checklists), and 901.42 (handovers). Brief, use SOPs, speak up under pressure, and never assume the map is the aircraft.

Advanced RPAS flights are rarely true solo sports. Even a “single pilot” job involves the public, possible ATC/NAV CANADA interfaces, clients, and sometimes a payload specialist. When operations expand to EVLOS, multi-battery grids, or complex sites, formal Crew Resource Management becomes the difference between a coordinated team and a group of people holding radios.

What CRM means for RPAS

Crew Resource Management is the effective use of all available resources—people, equipment, information, and procedures—to achieve safe flight. For drones, CRM includes:

• Clear roles and responsibilities
• Communication that is timely, specific, and acknowledged
• Assertiveness and mutual support (including challenging unsafe ideas)
• Use of checklists, SOPs, and briefings
• Management of workload and distractions
• Resistance to external pressure that erodes safety margins

CRM is not “being nice.” It is a safety method. A polite crew that never challenges a bad plan is not practicing CRM.

Interpersonal communications: crew, ATS, public, authorities

Crew communications

Use closed-loop patterns:

1. Sender states the message clearly (“Traffic left, high, moving right—land now”).
2. Receiver repeats back the critical content (“Landing now, traffic left high”).
3. Sender confirms if needed (“Correct”).

Standardize traffic call format and emergency words in the briefing. Avoid vague calls like “Watch out!” without direction and action.

ATS / air navigation interfaces

When operating with ATC or through RPAS authorization systems, communications must be professional, concise, and accurate. Read back clearances/conditions that require compliance. If you do not understand an instruction, ask—do not guess. Know who on the crew is responsible for the phone/radio so the pilot flying is not overloaded.

Public and bystanders

The public may approach for photos, complaints, or curiosity. CRM assigns someone to public interface when possible so the pilot can maintain VLOS and control. Never abandon the sticks to argue. If people enter the safety area, land or hold per SOP, then communicate.

Authorities and inspectors

Transport Canada inspection and document production themes (earlier air-law chapters) interact with CRM: be cooperative, truthful, and organized. Hostility and chaos under inspection are human-factors failures layered on regulatory ones.

Employer and peer pressure

External pressure is a leading driver of hazardous attitudes (resignation, impulsivity, macho). Examples:

• “The client is already here—just launch.”
• “Other companies fly this close all the time.”
• “If you will not do it, we will find a pilot who will.”
• Peer mockery for “overthinking” a checklist.

CRM response:

1. State the specific hazard and rule/SOP (not a vague feeling).
2. Offer a safer alternative (delay, different site, different altitude, more crew).
3. If still pressured into an illegal/unsafe act, refuse—certificate holders remain responsible under the CARs.
4. Debrief later with management so the organization learns; do not silently absorb repeated coercion.

Exam posture: the correct answer almost never prioritizes schedule over fitness, authorization, VLOS, or serviceability.

CRM roles: pilot, visual observer, payload operator

On small crews, one person may wear two hats—but acknowledge the conflict. A pilot who is also full-time payload editor has less capacity for traffic SA. EVLOS and dense traffic sites usually need a dedicated VO.

CAR 901.20 — Visual observers

CAR 901.20 addresses visual observers. Teaching points for Advanced candidates:

• When a VO is used, the observer is part of the regulatory and safety system, not optional décor.
• The VO must be able to perform the visual tasks assigned—fitness (901.19) applies to observers too.
• Communication pathways between pilot and VO must work in the real noise and distance of the site (radios, agreed hand signals as backup only where appropriate).
• The VO’s purpose is to help maintain awareness of the aircraft’s environment—especially traffic and hazards—so the pilot can operate safely within VLOS-related duties.

A VO who is filming for social media, texting, or standing with their back to the sky is not fulfilling 901.20 intent.

CAR 901.75 — Visual observers for EVLOS

Extended visual line-of-sight (EVLOS) is an Advanced concept that expands operations beyond classic single-person VLOS using procedures and crew. CAR 901.75 themes require appropriate visual observer arrangements for EVLOS so that the aircraft’s flight path remains adequately observed through the coordinated crew system.

Operational implications:

• EVLOS is not “fly until you lose it and hope telemetry is enough.”
• VOs are positioned and briefed to cover segments of the route or area.
• Handoffs of visual responsibility must be explicit (who has the aircraft now?).
• If visual coverage breaks down, the procedure is to recover/land or return to true VLOS conditions—not to improvise a BVLOS adventure.

Pair this rule family with your EVLOS privileges study (earlier Advanced rules chapter): aircraft declaration/privileges, procedures, and crew competence travel together.

CAR 901.21 — Compliance with instructions

CAR 901.21 emphasizes compliance with instructions from persons designated in the regulatory framework (e.g., relevant authorities/ATS contexts as applicable to the operation). For exam purposes:

• If a lawful instruction related to the operation is issued by the appropriate authority, comply.
• Ambiguity is resolved by clarification, not by continuing as you prefer.
• CRM includes assigning who monitors phones/radios for such instructions during flight.

Ignoring ATC/authority instructions because “the drone is small” is both a regulatory and CRM failure.

Briefings, SOPs, and CAR 901.23 procedures

Briefings

A pre-flight crew briefing should cover at least:

1. Mission objective and limits (altitude, lateral bounds, people distances)
2. Airspace/authorization status and lost-comm plan with ATS if applicable
3. Roles: who flies, who observes which sectors, who runs payload, who handles public
4. Communications plan and emergency words
5. Weather minima and abort criteria
6. Flyaway / lost-link / low-battery actions
7. Recovery and emergency landing areas
8. IMSAFE confirmation from each crew member

SOPs

Standard Operating Procedures turn good ideas into repeatable behaviour: launch order, battery handling, incident response, night kit, EVLOS chain, controlled-airspace callouts. SOPs reduce improvisation under stress.

CAR 901.23 — Procedures / checklists

CAR 901.23 themes address operating procedures and the use of appropriate procedures for the system and flight. In human-factors terms, that means:

• Use the manufacturer and company checklists for assembly, pre-flight, launch, and shutdown.
• Do not rely on memory for critical items after interruption.
• If interrupted mid-checklist, restart from a known safe point.
• Customize checklists for your configuration (payload, termination system, radios) without deleting safety items.

Checklists are CRM tools: one person reads, one confirms when multi-crew; solo pilots still verbalize or physically track items.

Controls, displays, and interpretation errors

GCS interfaces create unique error modes:

Interpretation errors are human factors, not “software bugs” alone. Train like the display can lie; verify with visual reality.

CAR 901.42 — Handovers

CAR 901.42 addresses transfer of control (handovers) between pilots. Unstructured handovers create dual-input fights, periods with no one in control, or confusion about who may land the aircraft.

Good handover CRM:

1. Stable flight condition (or agreed hover/hold) before transfer when possible.
2. Clear statement: “Ready to hand over control.”
3. Receiver confirms: “I am ready to take control.”
4. Positive transfer: “You have control.” / “I have control.”
5. Brief state: mode, battery, faults, traffic, mission segment, next plan.
6. Only one pilot commands the aircraft; dual-input only if the system and SOP explicitly allow training modes with safeguards.

Never toss a controller to someone mid-orbit with “here, you take it” during a traffic event.

Putting CRM together on a complex flight

Example EVLOS survey day:

1. Fitness: IMSAFE for pilot and all VOs (901.19).
2. Brief: sectors, radios, abort criteria, authorization limits.
3. Checklists: aircraft and GCS per 901.23 procedures themes.
4. Launch under VLOS; expand only when VO chain is positive (901.20 / 901.75).
5. Comply with any ATS/authority instructions (901.21).
6. If PIC changes mid-mission, formal 901.42 handover.
7. Resist client pressure to continue after a VO loses visual.
8. Debrief: communication breakdowns, near misses, checklist gaps.

Common exam traps for Section 9.3

• Treating the VO as optional scenery rather than safety crew under 901.20 / 901.75
• Accepting dual uncontrolled sticks during a casual “handover”
• Skipping briefings because the crew “has flown together before”
• Prioritizing employer schedule over instructions or procedures
• Assuming payload operators may command the aircraft without PIC clarity
• Ignoring display mode/unit errors as trivial

CRM, visual observers, SOPs, and structured handovers convert Advanced privileges into repeatable professional operations. Memorize the rule numbers, but more importantly, practice the behaviours: brief, loop communications, assert safety, and transfer control with discipline.